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MT-09 Street Rally: for special challenges

Posted On: November 6, 2013

“This bike is meant for tight corners as well as high speed sprints” says creator of the concept Oliver Grill. “We took inspiration from rallies on public roads, where you have technical sections, hairpins en open stretches all following each other. Like in the WRC car series, or the French MotoTour challenge.”

High riding position

Leg out

Lean forward

Wing style wind deflector

Wing sketch

Sideview sketch with number plates

Riding position
Enthusiastically he continues: “Existing supersport bikes are too fast for that, they are built for too high speeds, not for tight corners or blind corners where you have to change the line of the bike quickly. You need better control, a wide handlebar, and a better overview of the road, so a high riding position.”

Leg out
Not only the height of the riding position proved important, also the leg position. “In tight corners on bad surfaces, the ideal is to put your leg out, like on a supermotard. That’s why we have a higher seat than on the MT-09, to make this possible. The seat is slim and flat, without indent, so you can also shift your weight around from rear to front easily. This bike is made for super active riding.”

Motard, but different
“Also, the new seat automatically makes you lean a bit more forward, which is more stabilizing against the wind, and as a rallye concept we imagined important high-speed sections as well. Which meant, we also had to pay attention to aerodynamics. Which is a big difference with normal supermotards. We even thought about calling it a ‘speed motard’ to express that difference. But in the end we thought the word Rally is more correct, and we used the name Street Rally to make the link to public road riding.”

Wing design
A special feature on the Street Rally is the remarkable front fairing.
Designer Yashiro Shimizu says: “In the end we came up with the so-called Wing design. Instead of the normal bubble-type fairings, that wrap around the rider and become quite large, this is a straight deflector which keeps the light design of the bike intact. We took inspiration from B-class rally cars that are really powerful and have a lot of wings to keep enough pressure on the wheels! We made a shape that is sharp and aerodynamic and adds a strong character to the bike. And actually, the wing consists of different parts because we integrated the hand protectors into the design and added a spoiler under the headlight as well.”

Sketch explanation

Street Rally 2014

Optional Akrapovic exhaust

Special seat and sidecovers

Great triple engine with raw and linear torque output

With Valentino Rossi

History
The idea for the Street Rally concept is not new in Yamaha. “We had a prototype already five years ago” admits product planning manager Naoki Koike. “That was based on the TDM engine. But the TDM frame had the riding position more backward, more passive. The proto machine looked great, but there were doubts about the actual function – it was not extreme enough. In the end we decided to wait for the super-light MT-09 platform with its forward riding position.”

Flexibility
The Street Rally is actually a special edition of the MT-09, built up with genuine Yamaha parts. So also owners of a ‘normal’ MT-09 can find inspiration here!
In combination, these parts will provide a different riding position, different aerodynamics and an authentic rally sports spirit.

The special parts are:

Aerodynamic headlight cowling, number plate style

Knuckle guards, with added wind deflectors

Spoiler under the headlight

Fuel tank shrouds

Engine shrouds

Side number plates

Flat seat without indent, for a higher and more flexible riding position

Motard type footrests for improved foot grip.

Finally, also the color scheme of the bike is different, inspired by the classic white & red Yamaha race colours of the past!
It also has added details like the two-tone paint on the front fender and the pinstripes on the wheels.